Chapter 276 She Deserves All of This

Chapter 276 She Deserves All of This

When Jeremy and his family were dragged out into the hallway, most people in the hall heard the commotion.

After Craig pulled the side door shut, the music was still playing, but hardly anyone was really listening anymore.

A few tables of guests had gathered in the corners, talking in hushed voices. They tried to keep it down, but the whispers carried.

When Abigail walked back through the side door, most eyes in the room turned to her.

She was wearing that champagne-colored gown, the hem moving softly with each step. Her face showed no anger, no satisfaction — just calm, as if the scene in the hallway had been someone else's business entirely.

Chris was standing near the main table. When he saw her come back, he took a couple of steps toward her.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine."

Chris didn't push it. He just moved naturally to her left side.

Dashiell came over from the bar, a glass of water in his hand.

He held it out to her.

"Drink something. You need it."

Abigail took the glass and had a sip.

"I'm not upset."

Dashiell looked at her.

"Really, I'm not."

Abigail set the glass down on a nearby table and turned to face him.

"Dashiell, you've known me long enough. If I were actually angry, you'd know it."

Dashiell smiled a little and let it go.

His right hand was still in his pocket, fingers brushing against that small blue velvet box. He didn't take it out.

The mood in the hall gradually settled.

The band started playing again. Waiters moved through the crowd with champagne. Guests spread out in small groups, and people began making their way over to Abigail.

The first to reach her was Percy.

He was one of Marentis's oldest and most established developers — someone whose opinion carried weight in these circles.

Percy walked up to Abigail and raised his glass with a smile.

"Ms. Hubbard. Welcome home."

Abigail gave a small nod. "Thank you, Mr. Torres."

His wife followed close behind, taking Abigail's hand and studying her face warmly.

"You look just like your mother when she was young. Absolutely beautiful."

Over the next half hour, at least a dozen people came up to greet Abigail.

Some were genuinely happy for her. Some were looking for a way to get closer to the Hubbard family. Others were simply curious.

Whatever their reasons, the way they treated her had changed.

She was no longer "the Gonzalez family's ex-daughter-in-law." She was "the Hubbard family's daughter."

Abigail handled it all without missing a beat — a few words with each person, warm but measured.

Chris stayed by her side the whole time, not cutting in, but not going anywhere either.

One guest glanced at him. "And who is this?"

"Chris," Abigail said. "A friend of mine."

Chris smiled and shook the person's hand.

He didn't correct her on "friend." But he stayed exactly half a step behind her left shoulder the entire time.

Over by the dance floor.

Sophia was pulling Ethan toward the dessert table, their hands still loosely linked.

"What you said back there in the hallway was so cool." Sophia grabbed a macaron and shoved it in her mouth, words muffled. "Especially that last part — 'you don't have an invitation.' I almost started clapping right there."

Ethan glanced at her.

"You've got food in your mouth. Don't talk."

Sophia swallowed the macaron and licked her lips.

"And your sister — oh my god, she was incredible. The second she opened her mouth, the whole hallway just went quiet."

She gestured with her hands.

"Like in a movie, you know? The heroine speaks, and the villain just shuts up."

The corner of Ethan's mouth twitched.

It was barely noticeable, but Sophia caught it.

"You're smiling!" She pointed at his face.

"No I'm not."

"You were! I saw it!"

Ethan reached over and pushed her pointing finger down. His hand paused when it touched hers. Then he let go and moved his other hand back to her waist.

His touch was light, but closer than before.

Sophia froze for half a second.

She looked down at his hand at her waist, then back up at his face.

Ethan's expression hadn't changed. Like nothing had happened.

But his fingertips pressed in just slightly at her side.

Sophia's ears went hot.

In the corner.

Matthew was still in the hall.

He stood behind the farthest pillar, half-hidden in shadow.

Nico stood behind him, gripping his phone, breathing carefully.

Matthew watched Abigail in the middle of the room.

She was surrounded by people. Chris stood to her left. The glass of water Dashiell had given her was still sitting on the table nearby.

She was smiling.

She smiled when she talked to Percy's wife. She smiled again when she chatted with another woman.

It was easy and relaxed — the kind of ease that came from feeling secure.

The kind he had never been able to give her.

Matthew's hand hung at his side, knuckles tight.

He watched her for a long time.

Then he turned around.

Nico fell into step immediately.

"Mr. Gonzalez."

"Let's go."

Matthew's voice was quiet.

"She doesn't need me anymore."

They walked through the parking lot. The night air was cool, tugging at the lapels of his jacket.

Nico opened the car door and waited.

Matthew stood at the door for two seconds.

He looked back toward the banquet hall.

Light poured through the floor-to-ceiling windows, but from this distance, the figures inside were just silhouettes.

He got in and pulled the door shut.

"Take me home."

The engine started.

Nico sat in the passenger seat and glanced at the back in the rearview mirror.

Matthew was leaning against the window, eyes closed.

His face was unreadable. But his right hand rested on his knee, fingers digging into the fabric.

Nico turned his eyes back to the road and said nothing.

The car pulled out of the parking lot.

Back in the hall.

The band moved into the last song.

Abigail stood by the window, a half-full glass of champagne in her hand.

Ethan came over and stood beside her.

The two of them leaned against the window together, and for a moment neither spoke.

Abigail broke the silence first.

"Ethan."

"Yeah?"

"Thank you. For tonight."

Ethan looked at her.

"Don't thank me for that."

Abigail smiled and set her glass on the windowsill.

"I used to think I'd probably spend my whole life on my own."

She paused.

"Now I know what it feels like to have family behind you. It's completely different."

Ethan didn't say anything.

He reached out and lightly touched the top of her head.

"You'll feel this way every day from now on."

Abigail's throat tightened, but she didn't cry.

She looked out at the room.

Sophia was bickering with Mira by the dessert table.

Chris stood not far away with his drink, glancing over in her direction.

Dashiell sat at the bar, spinning a coin between his fingers.

Her friends and her family — all here.

A thought suddenly occurred to her.

She turned to Ethan.

"When you were dancing with Sophia just now — what did she say to you?"

Ethan took a sip from his glass.

His expression didn't change. But the tips of his ears went faintly red.

"Nothing."

Abigail looked at him. Held his gaze for a beat. Then the corner of her mouth slowly curved up.

"Your ears are giving you away."